Star-Struck
by Experiment Nova
Summary: [Written for Protector-of-Kalos for Secret Santa Exchange!] Your pocket's dripping ice cream, so of course you shove your hand in your pocket like an idiot.


**EDIT: OH MY GOD I'M SO SORRY I DIDN'T REALIZE YOU MEANT ANIME DENTO BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS HILDA FROM THE GAME I'M SO SORRY I CAN REWRITE IT IF YOU WANT**

A/N: Written for Protector-of-Kalos for the secret santa thing

(Uh, I'm so sorry for this, it's terribly short and probably really badly written I'm so sorry; and I, uh, ended up using game versions of them, so I'm not sure I included your headcanons and I'm so sorry- I'm not sure how I wrote it since I don't ship it and it might really suck I'm so sorry-)

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><p>It's been maybe a year or something since you last saw Hilda.<p>

She was…terrifying, to put it bluntly. The way her posture during battle, elegant yet poised, shifted animatedly with each (sadly) super-effective hit against your Pansage, leaping upon each deadly attack with such ferocity you would be surprised if she was not a madman.

…But she was rather captivating for a madman, you had found yourself thinking at the time, taking in the way her lilting voice rang out happily through the peaceful gym after receiving the gym bade, the way she eagerly grabbed your hands and shook them with such eagerness you could swear you could even imagine a future with her for moment, and the way her eyes pierced right into yours- oh, the way they sent a jolt through you, your knees shaking from the way they seemed to stare right into your very soul.

You watched her as she left the building without even a polite goodbye, probably too excited to remember manners, and you remember a pitfall occurring in your chest when the door closed behind her. Your speech impediment prevented you from calling out for her, although the notion had seemed very welcoming at the time for reasons unknown.

You had mentioned this to Chili and Cress after, only to find that while they agreed she had pretty eyes, they weren't as affected by them as you were.

She haunted you at night, sometimes, after the most normal of mornings and the most thrilling of evenings, although after that one visit, she never came back. Every single mention of her name by fellow gym leaders made a shiver run down your back, and although you were never one to mention her, Chili and Cress would often make inquiries about her.

It made you feel a bit weird hearing other gym leaders compliment her, because yes, while you agreed that she had talent, you wanted to be the only one who could say that about her; it was like a special sort of privilege. You were her first gym leader. It was highly illogical, and extremely unnerving, but you had wanted to know her the most.

You heard of her gym conquests all over, her contest wins, her defeats against even the hardest of trainers. You drank in those bits of information, letting them sink in the pit of your stomach, imagining yourself with her and dreaming of her.

You heard about Team Plasma, and how she was the Hero. You wanted to go chase after her and protect her, because she definitely wouldn't be able to defeat them single-handedly.

But when she went against Team Plasma, the other gym leaders were there, and you weren't.

It's been a long, long time since you've seen her last, and definitely much too long to be pining after this one girl, so you find yourself taking a break from the gym, alone and licking a Castelia Cone on a port in summertime Castelia City. The sewers have just been opened, and the guy who gave you a stone to evolve Pansage is no longer there. Everything has changed, yet stayed the same.

From the corner of your eye, you can see a figure ducking into the area cut off by traffic cones, and with wide eyes, you see the figure you've been dreaming of this whole time. Sure, her face is narrower, and her countenance slouched with teenaged years, but her jaw is still set firmly in place, and her eyes are still burning their way through your heart. You drop your Castelia Cone and it lands on your pant pockets in your surprise, and you cringe at how cold the ice cream feels through your ironed pants.

She doesn't see you, but your heart beckons you to follow, so the asthmatic and stuttering you apologizes for running into every single person you meet, your eyes staring at the entrance to the sewers, because that is where your one-sided love resides and you are too stupid to not go in.

She's far, far away, so far that you can barely see where she's going and she can't even hear your plodding footsteps, and you struggle to keep her in your sight. You fumble with your inhaler as you see light streaming from an entrance, and when you finally push yourself into the final hurdle, your eyes are blinded by the white, luminous sky.

And right in front of you…

Is a gang.

And Hilda's right there, standing in a defensive position.

What to do now? Your mind is already reeling because you hadn't even thought about the things you were going to say to her, and now there's a gang in front of her that looks like they're going to beat her up.

You're a frail skinny green bean, and Hilda, although her Pokemon skills are astounding, has never been threatened physically. She's more rebellious in attitude than would be acceptable in situations, and she'd definitely find some way to hurt herself.

A gruff voice cuts into your thoughts, and you swivel your head to look up at a bald motorcyclist, who stares down at you.

"What are you doing intruding in our hideout, punk?"

You can't respond, because you're still catching up on breath and you're intimidated, and you find yourself thinking how his bald head is like an egg. What a pretty thought to die with.

Hilda's voice pipes up, and suddenly the man above you pauses.

"Let Cilan go, he's probably just lost."

You turn and gape towards Hilda, who's walking over to you with an apologetic look on her face, and reaches her hand out. You look at it confused for a minute, before realizing that it's a hand to help you up, and then you hastily grab onto it, much too energetic for a normal person.

You cringe outwardly, which makes you cringe again, because you're acting like an infatuated schoolboy with a crush on the sweet girl next door.

That comparison in your head makes you blush, and in your self-musing, you find that you haven't let go of Hilda's hand yet, and you quickly shove your hand into your pocket, only to wrench your hand out of it again because of the ice cream still dripping from it. You wring your hand quickly and some ice cream droplets land on Hilda's shirt, and you are mortified.

You've managed to make yourself seem like a fool, you think, and you're still stuck staring at Hilda because how has she not left yet?

She's confused.

"Uh, Cilan, are you okay?"

You nod. You are not okay, definitely not okay, you've definitely messed everything up-

"Um, would you want me to walk you to your gym- oh, uh, it's a café now, huh? Uh…did he really scare you that much…? Um…if you were worried for me, it's alright. I beat them all in battle once, and now I'm the leader of their gang…"

You don't respond, because you're still in panic mode. Hilda looks really concerned right now, and oh god, you're such an idiot for making such an amazing girl worry about you-

"Yeah, um, Cilan, I'll bring you back. Sorry about the whole thing…"

She grabs you by the hand and leads you out, and you're so entranced with her presence, with just feeling her calloused hands grip yours and taking in her whole appearance, that you barely notice when she brings you to the steps of your café and gives you a quick peck on the cheek, pushing you inside your café.

The sudden force alarms you, and Chili and Cress give out a yelp when you fall from the push straight onto the floor, your red cheeks definitely not caused by the soft carpet you fell into.


End file.
